Saturday, April 20, 2024

Sports

FOOTBALL

Fumbling Spartans in bowl bind

West Lafayette, Ind. - One inexperienced quarterback and loads of mistakes left MSU one more week out of the bowl hunt. The Spartans (5-4 overall, 3-4 Big Ten) racked up six turnovers Saturday as they failed to clinch the sixth win needed to become bowl eligible for the second straight week.

SPORTS

One win away from destiny

Do players and coaches realize how much a bowl game can mean to a fan? I’m not sure. But I know, (dramatic pause) I owe my life to one. Let me explain. In 1965 the MSU football team was phenomenal.

ICE HOCKEY

Miller reigns over RedHawks

Apparently new players and a fresh season don’t make much difference - at least not for MSU and Miami (Ohio).The fourth-ranked Spartans blanked Miami 3-0 on Friday and 2-0 on Saturday, extending their defensive dominance over the RedHawks (6-5-1 overall, 4-3-1 CCHA) to four straight games.MSU also shut out Miami twice last January - 1-0 and 5-0 - and the RedHawks haven’t scored against the Spartans in 292:07 minutes of hockey, dating to the first period of a 5-1 MSU win on March 11, 2000.All five games in the streak have been played at Munn Ice Arena.“I’m always surprised we get a shutout,” MSU head coach Ron Mason said.

VOLLEYBALL

Stunning upsets elate Spartans

It’s the trip no volleyball team wants to make - traveling to No. 9 Ohio State and No. 13 Penn State on consecutive nights. Only three teams have ever survived the weekend with two wins.

SPORTS

Spartans bury Bruins in home tournament

The statistics didn’t look like those of a winning team.But with some unseemly numbers, the MSU women’s basketball teams beat Buffalo 50-42 and UCLA 67-63 to take first in the season-opening Spartan Chevrolet Classic on Friday and Saturday at Breslin Center.The team began the tournament at 8 p.m.

ICE HOCKEY

Spartans blank RedHawks at Munn for second straight night

Ryan Miller seems to have turned the usually potent Miami (Ohio) RedHawks into his personal statistic-padding team.The junior goaltender recorded another shutout over the RedHawks - his fourth straight whitewash of Miami - in Saturday night’s 2-0 MSU win at Munn Ice Arena.The Spartans (8-2-1 overall, 7-2-1 CCHA) have now held Miami (6-5-1, 4-3-1) scoreless for 292:07 minutes of hockey, dating to March 11, 2000.Miami came into the series averaging 3.90 goals per game, but Miller made 28 saves Saturday for his 23rd career shutout.

ICE HOCKEY

Spartans blank RedHawks at Munn for second straight night

Ryan Miller seems to have turned the usually potent Miami (Ohio) RedHawks into his personal statistic-padding team. The junior goaltender recorded another shutout over the RedHawks - his fourth straight whitewash of Miami - in Saturday night’s 2-0 MSU win at Munn Ice Arena. The Spartans (8-2-1 overall, 7-2-1 CCHA) have now held Miami (6-5-1, 4-3-1) scoreless for 292:07 minutes of hockey, dating to March 11, 2000. Miami came into the series averaging 3.90 goals per game, but Miller made 28 saves Saturday for his 23rd career shutout.

FOOTBALL

Spartans fumble five times in 24-14 loss to Boilers

West Lafayette, Ind. - The MSU football team failed to become bowl eligible for the second straight week Saturday as it fumbled the ball five times in a 24-14 loss to Purdue at Ross Ade Stadium.Redshirt freshman quarterback Damon Dowdell started the game because sophomore quarterback Jeff Smoker sprained his left shoulder last week against Indiana.

ICE HOCKEY

Miami weekend series first in cluster matchups

Miami (Ohio) rolls into East Lansing tonight with a high-octane offense and one of the CCHA’s premier players in forward Jason Deskins. But the RedHawks (6-3-1 overall, 4-1-1 CCHA), who finished second to MSU in the CCHA last year, were the pupils of a Spartan defensive clinic in the teams’ last meeting.

SPORTS

Womens hoops holds tourney

The MSU women’s basketball team will host the Spartan Chevrolet Classic for the 14th time on Friday and Saturday at Breslin Center. The tournament field includes Buffalo, Liberty, UCLA and MSU. Boston College won the tournament last year, downing MSU 63-61 in the championship game. Before last season’s championship game loss, the Spartans had won the tournament four consecutive years. MSU has advanced to the title game 12 of 13 years, its only first-round defeat coming in 1989 to the eventual champion, Kentucky. The first game sets Liberty against UCLA at 6 p.m.

BASKETBALL

Exhibition set for mens b-ball

The No. 15 MSU men’s basketball team has started 2-0 and still has one more exhibition game to tighten things up before the regular season continues. The Spartans play their second exhibition game of the year at 2 p.m.

SPORTS

Mens swimming team slips by Toledo while women dominate Rockets 192-108

Not only did the men and women’s swimming teams defeat another Mid-American Conference team Tuesday against Toledo, but the women’s 200-medley relay broke the pool record with a time of 1:48.55. Going into Toledo, the women’s team had a three-meet winning streak and the team continued its dominance by winning 13 events to defeat the Rockets 192-108. The record setting 200-medley relay team, consisting of junior Kathryn Duncombe, freshman Jessica Henning, junior Heather Wellings and freshman Alicia Copestick, broke the old pool record by .67 seconds. Copestick helped the women’s team in other events as well, swimming on the 400-yard freestyle relay team that won, 3:35.11.